In addition to several legal wives, Sharia provides for such an institution as concubines. In Islam, they mean women who in a certain way were associated with the defeated (killed by the enemy). Sometimes in war women were with their husbands. When they died during the battle, the wives were left alone. The winner could make them his concubines. Moreover, they differed from their wives, although the owner had some obligations regarding them.
Who are the concubines?
Dictionaries contain two interpretations of this word.
- The first of them - obsolete - is a "kept woman, mistress."
- The second is historical and stands for “captive,” or serf, who is forced to become a lover. And also as a “maid cleaning the bed,” “a slave in personal dependence,” “an illegal wife.”
Interestingly, the concept under study is inextricably linked with the bed, with the bed (on the bed). If we consider the concubines from the point of view of some religions, then, most likely, the last two interpretations are suitable. Consider them.
In Judaism and Christianity
To better understand the meaning of the concubines in Islam as an institution of slaves, we compare the attitude towards them in Judaism and Christianity.
According to scripture, the sons of Israel recognized their concubines publicly. And the latter had the same rights in the house as their legal wives. So, in the Book of Genesis such companions of the Old Testament patriarchs as Hettura, Valla, Reuma and others who gave birth to them children are mentioned. As stated in the Book of Kings, King Solomon had intimate relationships with 300 women.
According to the interpretation of Christian theologians, the concubine is a wife taken from slaves. There was no rite of betrothal and marriage record. As for children from illegal wives, they should have received gifts, but they did not have any inheritance rights. The fact that the Old Testament saints had extramarital affairs was seen as a weakness that God only endured. And now the connection with the concubines is perceived as a serious sin, which is equated with adultery and fornication.
It is interesting that in the days of pre-Christian Russia, a similar institution also existed. According to legend, Prince Vladimir had about 800 concubines. However, he immediately abandoned them as soon as he was baptized.
Concubines in Islam
In this religion, they were also not just lovers, with whom you could start on the side of intrigue secretly from your wives. The concubines in Islam are slaves, slaves who live in the house and are not hidden from the household. The key word here is a slave. That is, it became possible to become an illegal wife only in three cases. For this it was necessary to be:
- Taken prisoner.
- Presented to the master.
- Bought by him.
There were no other ways to become a concubine in Islam. At the same time, any Muslim was allowed to contain them.
Difference from wife
As in other religions, wives entered into an official marriage. At the preparatory stage, he provided for the consent of the parents or guardians of the bride, as well as gifts. Necessary was the wedding ceremony itself, which was called "nikah".
Moreover, his wife was distinguished by a number of rights inherent only to her. First of all, it was the right to a part of her husband’s property, which remained with her even in the event of a divorce. In addition, the wife was supposed from the husband's attention equal to what he showed to other spouses, if any.
According to the Sharia, the concubines for these rights could not count. Nevertheless, they were not disenfranchised slaves.
Unlike other slaves
When a slave who became a concubine gave birth to a son from her master, she passed into the category of “mother of a child”, while a free woman was called “mother of a son”. In the period before the spread of Islam and in the early years of its confession, the "mother of the child" was in no way different from other slaves.
It could be sold, gifted exchanged. Such rules on concubines in Islam were valid until about the middle of the 7th century, until they were abolished by the caliph Umar ibn al-Khattab. After this prohibition on sale, the slave who gave birth to a child acquired limited legal capacity and was considered conditionally released. She became completely free only after the death of her master.
In the event of the death of a child, there were two options. If the hostess of the concubine adhered to such a trend in law as the madhhabam, then the mother maintained her status, since the retroactive effect did not work after the promise of release. If other legal traditions were observed among the Muslim, then after the death of her son, which was a condition of release, the woman remained an ordinary slave.
There was another important rule regarding concubines in Islam. According to him, the sale of a pregnant slave in the event of the discovery of this fact for a certain period of time was declared an invalid transaction. Such a slave was returned to her former owner with the status of “mother of a child”. This status gave the child the right to be recognized along with legal children.
The Concubines of the Prophets
In the time of the early Muslims, slavery, as well as cohabitation with slaves, was commonplace. Such behavior was also characteristic of the Prophet Muhammad and his associates. According to various sources, Muhammad had from 15 to 23 wives who had the status of the mother of the faithful. In addition, there are references to four concubines, these are:
- Mary, who bore him a son, Ibrahim.
- Raikhana, descended from the tribe of Jews, converted to Islam and released.
- Safia captured, freed from slavery and became a legal wife.
- The slave presented to Muhammad by one of his wives - Zainab.
There is evidence that the prophet Ibrahim also had a concubine named Hajar. And the prophet Suleiman had as many as 300.
In the modern world, concubines in Islam are prohibited, since the institution of slavery itself has disappeared. Serious Muslim authorities testify to this. There is evidence that in our days Wahhabis and other radicals have concubines and slaves, but this has no relation to the true religious canons.